


Welcome to the Daycare

by just_the_worst



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-26
Updated: 2019-06-02
Packaged: 2020-03-17 13:19:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,766
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18966037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/just_the_worst/pseuds/just_the_worst
Summary: Wanting to train his team evenly, Youngster Joey decides to leave his favourite Rattata at the daycare for a few days. The lady who runs it seems a little creepy, but it's probably fine... right?





	1. Chapter 1

_Oh-boy! I love Joey! He’s my favourite. I wonder where we’re going to go today!_

“Hey buddy! I think I want to give some of my other pokémon a chance to level up. I don’t want you to get lonely, so I’m going to take you to the Pokémon Daycare, okay?”

“Buster”, the Rattata, looked up from his resting place on Joey’s lap. He blinked a few times.

_A day care? I’ll miss Joey…_

“Hey, don’t look at me like that. Maybe there will be nice _girl_ Rattata there.”

Buster perked up a little at his Trainer’s words. Maybe there would be nice pokémon there! Sometimes Joey read him books about teams of pokémon who would explore dungeons together. Maybe he’d meet his explorer partner!

As Joey readied his backpack and supplies for the day, Buster played at his feet, and swatted at his shoelaces. As Joey walked in front of him, Buster imagined all the different types of pokémon he wanted to meet.

_Maybe a nice Chansey… NO NO, A SQUIRTLE!!!_

He was so lost in thought that he actually bumped his nose into his Trainer when he paused in front of a large, friendly looking-building.

“Hi, I’d like to leave my Buster with you guys for a while so I can train my pokémon evenly!” Joey said to the lady at the counter, a large, earnest smile on his face. The lady peered at him over the counter. Her hair was shock-white. She looked a little frail and sickly.

“Ohoho. You’d like to leave a pokémon with us? You know that he probably won’t be the same after he comes back, don’t you?”

“He’ll be stronger right?”

“…oh yes. He’ll be MUCH stronger. More powerful than anything, really…”

“Oh he doesn’t NEED power. He’s in the top percentage of Rattata, I SWEAR. He’s just so smart! And so cute! Look at him!”

Buster recognized his Trainer’s pride well. He nuzzled his Trainer’s feet, affectionately.

“You’re a sweet boy. I’m sure your Pokemon love you very much.” said the old lady, a glint in her eye.

“So how much do I need to pay? I don’t have that much money…”

“Don’t worry, we charge based on how long you leave your Pokemon. Just come back fairly quickly, okay?”

“Thanks. Please take good care of him!”

“Oh, we will! Good luck with your training!”

* * *

 

“Come along now, follow me.” the old woman demanded once Joey had left.

Buster followed obediently, a little nervous now that Joey was out of sight.

_It’s going to be okay. Plus I’ll get to meet a whole bunch of new pokémon!_

At the end of the hallway there was a doorway that opened up to a fairly large, but fenced off, area. There was what seemed to be a miniature lake in the centre of the pen. Around the lake was a ring of flowers, and the lake itself was filled with vegetation. About a dozen medium-sized trees were also scattered around the area. The rest of the pen was covered with patches of grass.

“I’ll also show you to where you’re going to be sleeping tonight. We only keep a few pokémon in each room to avoid crowding”

The woman led Buster back inside and down a different hallway. He was led into a fairly barren room, which had only a poorly constructed Pikachu doll, and a few thin-looking mats laying on a concrete floor.

_At least the outside area looks like a nice place to be!_

“Anyway, let’s take you back outside.”

The woman led Buster back to the spacious outdoor area.

“I’ll let you get acquainted with the other pokémon we have staying with us right now.”

With that, the old lady returned to the daycare building.

A cheerful looking pokémon quickly approached Buster.

“Hi! Looks like you’re a new friend!” the pokémon pawed at the ground excitedly.

“Yeah! I’m Buster!”

“It’s great to meet you! My trainer calls me her “sweet goat boy”. She also sometimes says I’m her ‘Kid’ so I guess you can call me that, since Sweet Goat Boy is a bit of a mouthful.”

The pokémon had what looked like soft brown fur covering most of its body, except for some white patches on its face and near its hooves. Around its neck and across its back it had what looked like… leaves?

“I’ve never seen a pokémon like you before!”

“Yeah! I’m a Skiddo. My trainer is visiting some friends in Kanto, but that’s not where I’m originally from. In fact, I don’t think any of us are originally from Kanto…”  

It was then that Buster noticed some of the other pokémon that were lounging around.

Near the water there was a group of three of the same pokémon. They were blue with white bellies. They were also nearly spherical, with round ears and a blue, round ball attached to their tails. One of the pokémon seemed to be noticeably larger than the others

Kid followed Buster’s gaze.

“Oh! Those over there are the Marill gang. I’d look out for their leader, she’s kind of mean…”

Next to one of the trees Buster noticed what looked to be purple slime blob with green cheeks and slime-antennae.

“That’s a Goomy. To be honest, this one doesn’t really seem to react to anything. I’m not sure if they have a nickname or not, since they mostly just say ‘goooooooo’ a lot...”

“Looks like we’ve got another prisoner in this joint with us, -eh Kid?”

Buster looked towards a nearby tree where a pokémon was leaning casually. This pokémon stood on two legs. Its body was mostly blue, except for its feet, ears and a splash across its face which were black.

“Oh, Ri, don’t be silly. This isn’t a prison! Besides, Daisy will be back for us soon, you’ll see!”

“Don’t be naïve, Kid. She’s left us for good. We might as well leave and start a new life.” Ri folded his arms and huffed dramatically.

“Ri, it’s literally only been two days. Just relax!”

Buster wasn’t sure how to react to this pokémon’s apparently dour attitude.

“Um. Hi! I’m Buster! I’m sure your trainer loves you a lot and wouldn’t leave you?”

“Hmph. What would _you_ know about _my_ trainer?” Ri turned to glare at Buster and seemed to ball up his paws.

Kid immediately stood in front of Ri.

“Easy there, Ri. He’s just trying to help you feel better”

“Whatever,” Ri huffed, and stalked away.

“Sorry about him. He’s a Riolu, and he went through a lot before Daisy took him in. He’s normally pretty nice, but to be honest, we haven’t been sleeping very well.” Kid’s cheerfulness seemed to fade for a moment before he brightened.

“Sure, I might miss Daisy now, but I’m sure she’s going to want to tell us all about what happened during her visit with her human friends when she comes back!”

Buster could definitely understand where Riolu was coming from. If he thought Joey would maybe abandon him here he would definitely be extremely upset…

_There is literally no way that would ever happen though. Right?_

Suddenly, Buster had a feeling like he was being watched. He turned around, but couldn’t see anything around him.

 _Must just be my imagination_.

“Hey, wanna go take a nap in the sun for a little while? There’s a really nice spot near a bunch of flowers…”

Buster was happy for the distraction.

“Yeah, that sounds like it would be really nice”.

With that he and Kid laid down in the sunshine. Buster closed his eyes and did his best to relax.

 _Everything is going to be fine_.


	2. Chapter 2

Buster was awoken by a less than gentle kick in the face.

He bolted awake immediately and found himself and Kid surrounded by the three Marill.

“Ay! Loser! Don’t you know that’s our spot for taking naps, punk?!” the largest Marill spat, folding her arms in a way that was surprisingly intimidating, considering their stubbiness.

“We been here three weeks, and if the boss don’t get her nap, she gets real cranky. Ain’t that right, Marill Two?”

“So what we’re sayin’ is, you best skedaddle before Chonky over here loses her temper.”

“Oh, sorry, I didn’t mean to intrude or anything.” Kid said earnestly, “We’ll just go somewhere… over here…”

“Sorry? You better be sorry!” the leader, ‘Chonky’, sneered at Kid as he slunk away.

“YEAAAHH” the other two Marill chimed in unison.

_It’s probably best to follow Kid’s lead on this for now…_

Buster followed Kid to the other end of the enclosure, where Ri was waiting.

“Why’d you let them push you around like that?” Ri nodded towards the Marill Gang. “Come on Kid, you know you could take them, especially if Buster and I helped out! They’re water-types and you’re a grass-type.”

“Well, I don’t really want to start a feud with them or anything...” Kid muttered, his eyes fixed on the ground. “Sure, it sucks that they think they can do whatever they want, but I don’t want to have to fight with them all the time.”

“So what should we do now?” Buster asked, in an effort to change the subject.

“Well, Ri and I usually see if we can find any berries. I think the daycare lady buries some for pokemon to find, which is pretty fun! We usually split up to look and then bring anything we find back and split them between us. You can join us if you’d like!”

“Yeah, okay!”

“I’ll search near the Marill Gang so they don’t try to mess with you again,” Ri glared at the Marill.

“Okay, but please don’t start anything with them on purpose.” Kid said, a pleading note in his voice. “I’ll go around the fence and see if I can see anything.”

“I guess I’ll look around near the trees. Should we meet back here in a little while?”

“Yep! Sounds like a plan!” Kid brightened. “Some of the berries we’ve found have been really good!”

Buster started his search amongst the shade of the trees. Almost immediately, he got the feeling his was being watched. Anxiety cut through him like a knife.

_Is there something there? Why is it watching me? Is it planning on ambushing me? Is it mean like those Marill?_

A couple moments later, he felt a chill go through his back. Buster immediately felt himself go into flight mode. His heart pounding out of his chest, he looked over his shoulder and was startled to see what looked like a purple balloon with a face. It had a white puff on the top of it, a yellow x in the middle of its face and what looked like two long strings with hearts on them.

“Aaaahhhhhh!!”

“Oh sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you…” the pokemon said quietly, in a tone that was almost like a whisper.

After a couple of seconds, Buster felt his heart rate go back to normal.

“I just wanted to say hi, but you were hanging out with those other pokemon and I didn’t want to interrupt or anything...”

Glad that this pokemon seemed to be interested in being friends, Buster replied:

“Oh no, it’s okay! It’s good to meet you! I’m Buster.”

“I’m a Drifloon. My trainer doesn’t really have a nickname for me, so you can just call me Drifloon if you like. Or not, it’s okay if you don’t really want to talk to me or hang out or anything...” Drifloon trailed off dejectedly.

“Of course I’ll hang out with you, why wouldn’t I want to?”

“I’m not really very interesting.” Drifloon then seemed to brighten very slightly. “My trainer did teach me a cool trick that we can do together though. I’ll understand if you don’t want to...”

“No! That sounds like fun!”

  
“Okay, so you put your paw up in the air.”

Buster did as he was directed.

“And then I tap it with my string, paw, thing.”

As the two pokemon connected Drifloon’s appendage passed right through Buster. Buster shuddered, a chill going through his body.

“Oh…” Drifloon said in a defeated tone. “That’s not what’s supposed to happen… I’m sorry. I can’t even do a ‘high five’ right…”

“Don’t worry about it! Do you want to help me look for berries? Ri, Kid and I are hunting for them.”

“I don’t know… I don’t want to intrude…”

“You’re not intruding! I’m inviting you!”

“Okay,” for the first time Drifloon seemed to inflate a little, “that sounds fun!”

The duo spent the next half an hour hunting for berries. Buster pressed his nose to the ground in an effort to sniff them out while Drifloon floated around to get a “balloon’s eye view”.

“Hey, I think I see something.” Drifloon gestured towards a lump in the soft ground nearby.

“I’ll dig it up!”

As the dirt was removed it revealed a large, delicious looking, Pecha berry.

“Let’s bring this back towards our meeting spot.”

As the duo began to approach the meeting spot, Buster noticed Drifloon trying to slink away to hide amongst the tree branches.

“Hey! Where are you going?”

“What if your friends don’t want me around? I haven’t introduced myself yet, and it’s been two whole days, so it’s probably too late for me to talk to them now. What if they think I’m weird and creepy for hanging around and not introducing myself for two days!?”

“I don’t think that’s what they’re going to think. Kid especially is really friendly. Besides, if you don’t try, you can’t know!”

“...I guess you’re right.”

While they waited, Drifloon started to bob up and down, in what Buster presumed was her version of nervous pacing. They didn’t have to wait long for Ri to return. Ri went to stand next to Buster, but then paused and looked at Drifloon.

Drifloon tensed visibly.

“Where the hell did this Drifloon come from?” Ri asked curiously, frowning slightly.

Drifloon began to float upwards.

“Hey! Wait! Drifloon! Where are you going?”, Buster called after her. She continued to float upwards above the trees.

“Don’t you want some of the berries?!”

Drifloon appeared not to notice Buster’s questions as she continued upwards. Ri and Buster watched incredulously as she ascended into a cloud and disappeared from view.

“Wha…??” Ri questioned, standing with his mouth slightly agape.

It was then that Kid returned, carrying three delicious-looking berries on his back.

“Oh, hey everyone! What’s going on?” Kid asked, eager to hear the scoop about whatever was clearly baffling Ri.

“Well, Buster brought back a weird Drifloon that just floated into space for no reason? When did she get here? Why did she leave? Where did she go? Did her trainer leave her here? Is she coming back? How will her trainer pick her up if she doesn’t come back??”

“She’s not weird! She’s just really shy, and I think you might have scared her a bit. I think she really cares about her trainer, so I’m sure she’ll be back.” Buster said confidently.

“How about we save her a berry then? That way she’ll know that we’re happy to get to know her! How about you hold onto it for now, Buster? That way if you run into her you can give it to her!”

That left one berry for each of them. They enjoyed the fruits of their labour as the sun set around them.

A loud bell rang through the yard.

  
“Time to go in the for the night, dearies”, the voice of the old woman rang throughout the enclosure.

Ri and Kid stood up immediately and began to run back to the entrance of the daycare. Buster followed, unsettled by how urgently they had heeded the old woman’s command.

The old woman led them all into their rooms. Ri and Kid were staying in the same room as the Marill Gang.

Buster was led into the same barren room he had seen before. The Pikachu doll was still there but...

_Wasn’t it on the other side of the room earlier?_

Drifloon floated into the room a few moments later. She looked alarmed, then deflated.

“oh... hey… sorry about running away earlier…”

“It’s okay! Ri can be a little intense, I can understand getting nervous.”

“You’re not mad at me?” Drifloon said hopefully, inflating slightly.

“Of course not!”

Buster passed Drifloon the remaining berry.

“Look! We saved you a berry! Thanks for helping!”

“Really? Thank-you…”

Buster yawned.

“I guess it’s time to try to get some rest, right?”

Drifloon bobbed up and down in agreement.

“Goodnight, Buster.”

“Goodnight, Drifloon.”


End file.
